1. Field of Invention
The present invention relates to a shift lever assembly for an automatic transmission vehicle, and more particularly, to a shift lever assembly for an automatic transmission vehicle where an engaging lever is installed on a front of the shift lever.
2. Description of Related Art
As shown in FIGS. 1 to 3, a driver can select an automatic mode or a sports mode depending on his/her necessity in the shift lever assembly for an automatic transmission vehicle provided with a shift lever 1 and an engaging lever 2.
That is, the driver can select a P (parking) range, a R (reverse) range, a N (neutral) range, and a D (driving) range by moving front/rearward the shift lever 1 along a slot 11 in the automatic mode, and select at random an up-shift (+direction) or a down-shift (−direction) by moving the shift lever 1 to a slot 12 for sports mode so as to drive more dynamically in the sports mode.
Meanwhile, when the shift lever 1 is moved along the slot 11 for automatic mode, the shift lever 1 and the engaging lever 2 are integrated to rotate front/rearward together, that is, a lever protrusion 1a provided on the shift lever 1 is inserted into a lever groove 2a provided in the engaging lever 2 to be integrated wherein the shift lever 1 and the engaging lever 2 are rotated front/rearward around the lever shaft 3 when the shift lever 1 is operated by a driver.
Further, when the shift lever 1 is moved to the slot 12 for sports mode from the slot 11 for automatic mode, only the shift lever 1 is rotated to one side around a lever pin 4 and thus the lever protrusion 1a of the shift lever 1 is deviated from the lever groove 2a of the engaging lever 2. As a result, the shift lever 1 and the engaging lever 2 are separated and thus only the shift lever 1 is moved along the slot 12 for sports mode to perform the operation of the up-shift or the down-shift.
Meanwhile, one end of the shift cable 13 is connected to a cable connection protrusion 2b provided on the engaging lever 2 and the other end thereof is connected to a shift operation mechanism of a transmission main body.
However, according to a conventional shift lever assembly in which the engaging lever 2 is disposed on a side of the shift lever 1, the shift lever 1 is rotated and moved to one side direction of the assembly so as to be operated as the sports mode and thus a width direction size M1 of a corporate body of the shift lever 1 and the engaging lever 2 has to be designed considering a side direction rotational moving distance of the shift lever 1, thereby making the whole size of the shift lever assembly great.
When the whole size of the shift lever assembly becomes great as described in the forgoing, it reverses the latest trend for seeking light-weight and fuel ratio improvement of the shift lever assembly.
Further, when the shift lever 1 is moved along the slot 11 for automatic mode, the cable connection protrusion 2b of the engaging lever 2, to which the shift cable 13 is connected, is moved along a rotational radius around a lever shaft 3 as shown in FIG. 4, wherein it is known that a shaking angle θ1 is produced between two center lines L1, L2 due to the rotational movement of the cable connection protrusion 2b, comparing to the longitudinal direction center lines L1, L2 of the shift cable 13 when the shift lever 1 is disposed on each of the P range and the D range.
The shaking angle θ1 is gradually becoming greater as the shift lever 1 is moved from the P range toward the D range wherein the power transmission efficiency of the shift cable 13 is decreased due to the shaking angle θ1, thereby decreasing shift efficiency.
The information disclosed in this Background section is only for enhancement of understanding of the general background of the invention and should not be taken as an acknowledgement or any form of suggestion that this information forms the prior art already known to a person skilled in the art.